Headlines in the U.S. and even in England declared last week that an Upstate college banned homosexuality, but when WYFF News 4 looked at all of the official statements made by the college on human sexuality, there was no indication that homosexuals were banned from the school.

In March 2014, OutSports.com did a feature report on Juan Varona and Drew Davis, two openly gay volleyball players at Erskine College.

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In that article, Davis and Varona were quoted as saying all of their teammates had “been amazing” since becoming aware that they are gay. They also recounted having overall positive experiences and acceptance from teammates and others.

Last Friday, Erskine released a statement on human sexuality that has led to accusations within the media of the school “banning homosexuality."

The statement said, in part, "We believe the Bible teaches that monogamous marriage between a man and a woman is God's intended design for humanity and that sexual intimacy has its proper place only within the context of marriage." (More: Erskine's full position statement on human sexuality)

In response to the statement, OutSports.com posted an article with the headline, "South Carolina college with two out gay athletes bans homosexuality in the name of God."

The article says, "Now Erskine College has issued a new official statement that is expected to drive a no-gays policy at the school and create an atmosphere where LGBT people do not feel safe."

The "bans homosexuality" phrase was picked up and used in headlines by numerous news outlets in the U.S. and England, including the Washington Post, USA Today and Huffington Post.

"The statement was not created or published in response to any individual students or groups of students," Cliff Smith, vice president of communications for Erskine, said in an email to WYFF News 4. "The statement itself was in discussion long before the players were mentioned in any media last year. So, short answer is no, there is no link between the two events."

"It appears that was an inference the original reporter made. He did not contact us before releasing his story that made that link."

Erskine released an official statement Friday saying the coverage had "generated considerable confusion based on an inaccurate understanding of the nature of the statement and its intent."

The release said the college's statement "describes a position" and is not a "policy and does not 'ban' any individual or class of individuals from attending Erskine." It said no students have been asked to leave the college.

The release says that Erskine is a "distinctly Christian academic community" where all types of students are welcome.

The college's stand is that the position on homosexuality is in keeping with the "broader evangelical church" and is not unusual or unexpected.

The release said, "Erskine seeks to treat all persons justly with grace, dignity, and compassion in the Spirit of Christ. Erskine recognizes the complexity of current issues regarding sexual morality, marriage, and other expressions of human sexuality such as same-sex attraction, gender identity, and sex outside the covenant of marriage."

People around campus Tuesday said that the timing of the statement raised more eyebrows than the statement itself. But student and staff also said they believe Erskine's intentions were misrepresented by media outlets across the country.

Smith said, "Although we don't have any policies saying anyone needs to declare anything about their identity, neither do we have an policy that would prohibit someone from identifying with any particular group."

One student who spoke to WYFF News 4 said, "Even as a gay student myself, I'm not offended at all. And I don't feel unsafe. I don't feel discriminated against.

Another said, "No matter if you're straight or homosexual, I feel that the main goal here at Erskine is to get you closer to Christ."